Offside (2006)

Struggle of Women in a country that excludes them from entering the stadiums.

Director:

Jafar Panahi

Writers:

Jafar Panahi, Shadmehr Rastin

Stars:

Sima Mobarak-Shahi, Shayesteh Irani, Ayda Sadeqi

5 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mohammad Asarian	...	Shxyxn
Sima Mobarak-Shahi	...	First girl
Shayesteh Irani	...	Smoking girl
Ayda Sadeqi	...	Soccer girl
Golnaz Farmani	...	Girl with tchador
Mahnaz Zabihi	...	Girl disguised as soldier
Nazanin Sediq-zadeh	...	Young girl
Melika Shafahi
Safdar Samandar	...	Soldier from Azerbaijan
Mohammad Kheir-abadi	...	Soldier from Mashad
Masoud Kheymeh-kabood	...	Soldier from Tehran
Mohammed-Reza Gharebaghi
Hadi Saeedi	...	Soldier
Masoud Gheyas-vand
Ali Baradari	...	Bus Passenger

Storyline

"Offside" is about a group of Iranian girls who attempts to enter Tehran's Azadi Stadium dressed as boys in order to watch a big football match but some get caught and arrested. After the establishment of the Islamic Republic in Iran, women are not allowed to enter the stadiums.

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Plot Keywords:

stadium | iran | soccer | iranian | world cup | 

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Taglines:

In Iran, All Women Are Banned From Men's Sporting Events

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for language throughout, and some thematic elements

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jafar Panahi asked each of the girls in the film to turn up with their own idea of how they would disguise themselves as a boy and what we see in the film was the girls' own attempts.

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Connections

Referenced in At the Movies: 25 Years of Margaret & David (2011)

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Soundtracks

Ey Iran
Lyrics by Hossein Gol-e-Golab
Music by Ruhollah Khaleghi
Heard over the credits

User Reviews

The Wonderful Passion for Soccer

In Iran, women are officially banned from men's sporting events. In June 2005, the Iran's national soccer team has an important game against Bahrain in the Azadi Stadium for the qualification of the World Cup. A group of Iranian girls and lovers of soccer dresses like boys and unsuccessfully attempts to enter in the stadium being arrested.

Soccer (and Flamengo's team), beach and movies are my greatest passions; therefore I loved this little gem about a group of girls and their passion for soccer. The director Jafar Panahi, from "The White Balloon", "The Mirror" and "The Circle", shot this movie on the day that Iran defeated Bahrain and qualified to the World Cup in Germany. The dramatic and funny adventure of these Iranian girls is one of the most delightful movies I have ever seen. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Classics [United States] sourehcinema

Country:

Iran

Language:

Persian

Release Date:

26 May 2006 (Austria)

Also Known As:

Hors jeu

Filming Locations:

Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran

Box Office

Budget:

$2,500 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$18,003, 25 March 2007

Gross USA:

$180,530

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$561,692

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jafar Panahi Film Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min 88 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1